


The Vending Machine Behind the Bar

by theangryduckling



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bar/Pub, College Student Eren Yeager, Multi, POV Third Person Omniscient, The Garrison is a bar, for qtpiewithlove, pretends to be your bf to save you from that creepy guy at the bar au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-28
Updated: 2014-09-28
Packaged: 2018-02-19 01:15:11
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2368988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theangryduckling/pseuds/theangryduckling
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Armin told himself that it was unsafe behind the bar, and that he shouldn't go there, but damn was he thirsty.</p><p>\\</p><p>A request/prompt from tumblr user qtpiewithlove</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Vending Machine Behind the Bar

**Author's Note:**

  * For [qtpiewithlove](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=qtpiewithlove).



     "C'mon, baby, let's get outta here," the man slurred. His breath reeked of alcohol and cheap cigar smoke, as was the norm in the cheap bar they were spending their Tuesday night in.   
  
     He thought back to how how he had gotten there.  
  
//  
  
     "Eren, get your ass out of bed. You can't mope around forever, you know. You're going to have to see sunlight sometime this decade." Mikasa pulled relentlessly at the blankets and pillows wrapped tightly around him. He grumbled and scoffed before rolling off the futon he'd practically colonized in the past week, taking his blankets with him.  
  
     "You don't know anything. I could stay here for the rest of my life, and what could you do about it? This isn't your house." He shuffled until he was underneath the futon, facing the floor. He grimaced at the dust that was now spread across his body, but made no move to get out from underneath his couch-bed. Mikasa only rolled her eyes at his adamant refusal to do anything even remotely useful and stalked forward, plopping down on the futon just above where Eren's upper back was. She heard a high pitched squeak followed by an indignant yelp of her name. "Mikasa! Get off of me!" His voice was slightly muffled from his close proximity to the floor, but distinguishable nonetheless.  
  
     "What could I do about it? I wonder, Eren, what do you think I could do?" She shifted a bit, putting more pressure on Eren's back. She smirked when she saw him squirming to get out, only to find himself to stuck between the floor and Mikasa's weight. She would adamantly deny it, but Mikasa took great pride in besting Eren. While it wasn't difficult, it always guaranteed a hilarious reaction from her adopted brother. He was the best to tease.  
  
     "Mikasa! Get the fuck off! I can't _breathe!_ " Eren's pitiful shouts only managed to make her more amused, and he heard a faint laugh from above him. While it would only be a small huff of air to most people, for him it brought back memories to all the times he'd told her stupid jokes in an effort to get a big, _real_ smile out of her; to make her _feel_ as much as he was. That had been before he'd realized that even the smallest smile or the quietest laugh she'd grace him with were a lot. Before he realized she felt just as much as he did, but showed it differently. He lived for the moments like this, when she'd relax enough to laugh. It meant he'd made her unbelievably happy. And it was worth it, even if it meant getting his lungs crushed.  
  
     He made the decision to prolong this for as long as he could, damn the risks his lungs were facing. He had to hear her laugh again. "Nooooo! You've defeated _me_ , the great and powerful Rogue Titan!" That had been his character name when they'd played their favorite game, Attack on Titan, day and night during their prepubescent years. That game had led to many conversations and three different coming out stories. "I cower before you, have mercy! Have _mercyyyyyy!"_  
  
     He heard that small exhale of air again and grinned. He'd made her laugh.  
  
     "Oh? You concede? So that means you'll get off your ass and come to the bar with me tonight, no?" The grin slipped off his face. Mikasa grinned slyly to herself. It was too easy to win with him. She stood up and tapped her foot impatiently, waiting for him to come out.  
  
     He hesitated, but slowly slid out. He stood up and averted his gaze. "Mikasa, I can't. It's only been a week and a half. I don't want to go out and get drunk. I don't want to get hit on by creepy guys. I don't want to, not yet."  
  
     Mikasa stilled, then sighed. "Eren, don't let him control your life even after he's gone. He cheated on you, he lied. None of it was your fault. He should be moping because he lost you. You shouldn't be moping because you got rid of him. Just... Come and have a beer with me? It's been a while. You can leave right after, if you want."  
  
     Eren looked back to her and smiled, but it still seemed strained. "I just... I just thought he and I would last. We were together for so long, and now it's just... Was it really nothing to him? Was I really nothing?"  
  
     Mikasa stepped forward and wrapped her brother in a tight hug. She'd never been good at consoling others, so that was the most she could offer. He returned it wholeheartedly.  
  
     "Oh, Eren... You'll never be nothing."  
  
     They stood for what seemed like hours.   
  
     Eren pulled away first, smiling slightly. His voice wavered a bit as he spoke, "I think we have a bar to get to."  
  
     And Mikasa's smile was bigger than he'd seen in months.  
  
//  
  
     "Why did you guys bring me along? I can't even drink if you guys are going to," Armin grumbled from the backseat. "You guys are gonna get smashed and I'll have to drag your sorry asses home. _And_ I'll be thirsty."  
  
     "Armin, just buy a Sprite from the vending machine by the bar." Eren said, poking his childhood friend on the forehead. "I thought you were the smart one."  
  
     "I _am_ the smart one! That 'vending machine by the bar' is in the alley _behind_ the bar! I'd be insane to go back there, who knows what kind of people hang out back there?" Armin was frantic at this point.  
  
     "Armin, it's fight or--" Eren began, but was cut off by Mikasa.  
  
     "Armin, we're not in the bad part of town. You'll be fine." She'd been silent until then, content to listen to their bickering while she drove, but Eren was about to start one of his lectures. They didn't have the time or the will to listen to that.  
  
     Again.  
  
     Eren finished his speech under his breath.  
  
     Mikasa glanced into the rear view mirror to see how Armin was coping with his unfinished argument. To her surprise, he was smiling fondly at Eren's mutterings. She made a mental note to ask him about it when they were alone. She pulled into the parking lot beside their favorite bar, the Garrison.  
  
     "Alright, let's go." She said, swinging her door open. They slid through the doors and made their way to the bar. Eren and Mikasa situated themselves on stools while Armin merely leaned his elbows on the counter to hold himself up.   
  
     "Hey, kids! Been awhile since I've seen you here! How's it been?" Hannes exclaimed from the other side of the counter. Hannes had been a family friend for years and years, which led to them having access to his bar long before they were legal. They'd built up quite an alcohol tolerance since then, with the exception of Armin. It seemed he'd always be a lightweight.   
  
     "Been better. Just a beer, please, Hannes." Eren said, and Mikasa held up her hand to indicate they needed two. He nodded and looked to Armin, who shook his head and mumbled something about a _'dirty vending machine'_ and walked away. Eren laughed at his misfortune, watching him leave throught the back exit.  
  
//  
  
     "Goddamn wrinkly bills. Damn it." Armin muttered, trying in vain to smoothen out a wrinkly one dollar bill. He'd tried every one and five in his wallet for this forsaken vending machine. Three lights were out and one was blinking tiredly. Looking at the machine, Armin wondered if it would even accept anything in its state. He huffed indignantly and swung his left foot forward, doing more damage to his toes than the machine. He swore loudly and hobbled to the wall. Leaning against it, he massaged his throbbing toes, waiting for the sharp pain to die down.   
  
     "Hey, baby... You look hurt. Want me to kiss it better?"   
  
     Suddenly, there was a towering presence enveloping him. He looked up slowly, coming eye to eye with a man over twice his size and probably twice his age. The man had his hands on either side of Armin's head, long arms bent so he was a mere inch or two from the younger. The cigar hanging out of his mouth was in danger of burning Armin, who found he had nowhere to go. The man was so close Armin could almost smell the desperation to get laid.  
  
     Despite all of this, Armin's first thought was, _"Oh my God, he has a foot fetish."_  
  
     Armin pulled himself together enough to answer. He lowered his foot to the ground and raised himself to his full height; a whole five feet and three inches.  
  
     "No, I don't. Please step away from me." He said through gritted teeth.   
  
     The man smirked and leaned closer, to which Armin leaned further back. He dropped his burnt out cigar on the ground by their feet. " _C'mon_ , baby, let's get outta here," the man slurred.  
  
     Armin took a moment to see how his life had led him here.  
  
     He clenched his fists, as useless as they might have been. " _No_ , step away from me," he said, voice firm.  
  
     This did nothing but anger the man, who pulled Armin forward only to shove him back on the wall, hard. The breath left his lungs as he heard the man growl, "Who the _fuck_ do you think you are? I'm offering you somethin' great, why're you tellin' me no?" He pulled back a fist, aimed at Armin's face. "You're lucky I like 'em bruised, boy. You're no one. For tonight, I'll let you be my someone."  
  
     Before Armin had the chance to come to terms with the fact that he couldn't talk his way out of this one, a strong voice spoke up.   
  
     "He's not no one, he's my boyfriend."   
  
     Both Armin and his attacker turned to look at the new arrival. He was big, to say the least. And not just in size. His entire being oozed an essence of importance and superiority. His expression alone seemed like it could kill.  
  
     Without thinking, a new concept for Armin, he snuck beneath the man's fist out of harm's way. He backed slowly away from the man.   
  
     Taking a closer look at his savior, he noted a strong jawline complimented by a neat hairline and the largest eyebrows he'd ever seen. Beneath them was a pair of clear blue eyes. Armin decided he wouldn't mind if he _was_ his boyfriend. Armin would have continued his scrutiny, if not for the drunkard's voice calling him back to reality.   
  
     "Your boyfriend? _Ha_ , fine. But don't think I won't get something outta his ass." He said, promptly grabbing Armin's arm and pulling him into a sloppy kiss. His breath was hot, laced with cigar smoke and alcohol, and his tongue forced a burning line down Armin's throat. His teeth clamped down Armin's bottom lip, drawing blood. His hands were holding Armin's head in place, assuming his hands could do him no harm.  
  
     A rather unwise assumption for him to make.  
  
     Armin raised his deceptively small fist and shoved it full force into the man's jaw, who jumped backwards, tripped on his feet and landed on his ass. He heard a soft laugh from behind him.  
  
     "Not bad, kid. But it's my turn." A short man stepped out from behind the tall blond, menacing aura sending Armin a few steps away from him. Armin had a feeling that his short stature was as deceptive as his fists. "Erwin, get the kid inside. I'll handle this _scum_."   
  
     The tall blond, Erwin, nodded and placed a hand on Armin's upper back, between his shoulder blades, leading him back inside. He smiled and introduced himself, "As you heard, I'm Erwin. Are you here with anyone?"  
  
     Suddenly, without the threat of danger hanging down on him, he was able to see just how handsome his savior happened to be. Even more handsome than he had first thought. How he wished he had a different answer to his question. Instead--   
       
     "Armin! Who's this?"  
---  
  
**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! <3


End file.
